Rocktober Album #22: Mötley Crüe – Shout at the Devil (1983)

It is with a heavy heart that I report that Rocktober will soon be over. But fear not, starting Monday, I will launch a new series called No-no-no-vember – a daily look at history's most infamous rapes. First up: Europa. I kid. I have a bit of a dark sense of humor. Hell, I like to ask anorexic women when they're due.

With the pagan equivalent of Christmas coming tomorrow, it's only fitting that that last album of Rocktober have demonic undertones. Mötley Crüe's sophomore effort, Shout at the Devil, is a solid piece of hard rock – made in an era before the power ballad (which, of course, Mötley Crüe would popularize on their next album with "Home Sweet Home"). As a result, all of the songs are heavy rockers, and there aren't and damned pianos. The version of the album that I have is part of the Crüe's recent remastering of all of their albums, so it includes several bonus tracks (tracks 12-16).

A lot of people are confused by the title of the album, believing it to be some sort of invitation to hail the devil. I always took it to mean the opposite, i.e., that you should holler at the devil. "Hey, devil, don't be such a jerk!" See, that's not so bad after all, is it?

Before getting to the songs, I need to take a minute to note that the '80s were awesome. In what other decade would an album cover featuring a barbarian tranny motif have been so widely accepted as normal? Seriously, look at these guys. Nikki Sixx's hair is simply enormous. I think he was going for the "deaf glam goth linebacker" look, as evidenced by the make-up, the eye-black, the black leather, and the fact that he is signing "I love you." Vince Neil is sufficiently creepy, and certainly appears ready to sack Troy. Tommy Lee looks like a pirate hooker, literally. In his defense, he was probably also getting a blowjob when this picture was taken. Mick Mars looks like an emaciated version of Elvira. He is the definition of a walking soul. They certainly were a – wait for it – motley crew.

1. In The Beginning
This is a fire-and-brimstone, ethereal, spoken-word intro to the album, by some Vincent Price-esque dude describing basically how the world has gone to hell in a hand basket, although you can be assured that the term "hand basket" appears nowhere in any Mötley Crüe album. Anyway, the old man encourages you all to "be strong and shout at the devil!" Real reactionary.
2. Shout at the Devil
The title track is now an '80s glam metal classic. It's biting and raw, with a great guitar riff, dark imagery, and Vince's characteristic wail.
3. Looks That Kill
This is just a great hard rock/heavy metal song. The riff is fantastic.
4. Bastard
This might be my favorite song on the album. It's fast-paced, straight-forward hard rock song with a solid refrain ("bastard"). How can you not like a song written about a child born out of wedlock?
5. God Bless the Children of the Beast
This is a weird, relatively short and slow instrumental, presumably about Uday and Kusay Hussein.
6. Helter Skelter
A mildly entertaining cover of the Beatles' song that Charles Manson somehow misinterpreted as calling for a global race war. It's about a slide.
7. Red Hot
There is almost a punk vibe to this one, at least in tempo. Its pace is very frantic, with Tommy Lee's drum work leading the way throughout the song.
8. Too Young To Fall in Love
This is a plodding, dark rocker that some have hypothesized is about me. Those rumors are false. In fact, at the time this album came out, it was clear that I was NOT too young to fall in love, as I had already fallen in love with some chick named Carissa several weeks before the album was released, on the first day of kindergarten. I even kissed her on the cheek at some other kid's birthday party. She did not return the favor, thus holding the honor of being the first in what has become a long line of ardent, recurring rejection by the opposite sex that continues to this day.
9. Knock 'Em Dead, Kid
Another straight-forward rocker.
10. Ten Seconds to Love
I find it odd that Motley Crüe wrote a song about when I lost my virginity.
11. Danger
This is kind of a cheesy song that might have fit well in an '80s B horror movie, presumably about a massacre of some sort in a sorority house or at a slumber party.
12. Shout at the Devil (demo)
As it is a demo, it sounds a lot like the final version, but not as polished. There is also some shrieking at the end that isn't in the regular version.
13. Looks That Kill (demo)
This is also virtually the same as the final version.
14. Hotter Than Hell (demo)
This song is of no relation to the KISS song of the same name. Actually, this song would later become "Louder Than Hell" on the Theatre of Pain album.
15. I Will Survive
This song is of no relation to the Donna Summer song of the same name. Thank God, or, more appropriately, the devil.
16. Too Young To Fall in Love (demo)
This is also very similar to the final version, although a bit rougher and, therefore, less fulfilling.